The sports of camping, back-packing and hiking have long enjoyed tremendous popularity. These sports often include an overnight stay out-of-doors which requires some form of sleeping set up. These sleeping set ups often include a mattress and some type of covering element, such as a tent or the like.
The art of tents is quite old and is so well developed as to include a plethora of various tent designs.
However, in recent times, there has been a further demand for a tent that is easily stored, carried and set up. Such a requirement has led to still further tent designs, including the so-called inflatable tent which is stored in a deflated configuration and is then inflated for use. As before, the art of inflatable tents is also quite well developed.
While all of these myriad of tent designs has proved to be somewhat successful, there is still at least one problem with such known tents that has vitiated the complete commercial success of such tents. This problem arises due to the varied demands now being placed on tents by the increased popularity of the above-mentioned out-door sports. For example, a camper may be required to cross a river, sleep on uneven terrain, sleep in varied weather conditions, and yet travel great distance over difficult terrain--all on the same outing.
To be most comfortable, this camper should carry several tent designs. However, as will be evident, such a solution is not practical. Therefore, the tent design should be as versatile as possible.
However, heretofore known tents simply are not versatile enough to fully meet all of the above-described needs in an efficient manner. As an example of this, a tent, even an inflatable tent, simply does not make an effective raft, and a covered tent may not be desirable in certain situations.
Accordingly, there is a need in the camping art for a camping device that is adaptable for use in a wide variety of situations and conditions.